Purchasing, specifically, is challenged to capitalize onthese transformations, which represent the opportunityto cross the next frontier of cost optimization and achievepreviously unheard-of cost savings. There moreover existgreater efficiencies to be gained in how the procurementfunction operates: Digitally enabled collaboration withinternal stakeholders and suppliers, automated/robotizedprocesses and activities, partnership with startups...

More and more, organizations are recognizing thecritical impact Procurement can have. More thanever, they are feeling the pressure to step up theirgame. Even the most advanced organizations lackthe full portfolio of specialized expertise, informationand technology to optimize this impact...

More and more, organizations are recognizing thecritical impact Procurement can have. More thanever, they are feeling the pressure to step up theirgame. Even the most advanced organizations lackthe full portfolio of specialized expertise, informationand technology to optimize this impact.

Rapid advancements in digital technologies are remakingbusiness supply chains, and are poised to transform how theprocurement function delivers value. Low-cost computing anddata storage have enabled advancements in mobile technologyand the cloud, constant connectivity is the norm, and sensorsbring devices and machines to life in the Internet of Things.

As this report will attempt to describe, issues such as globalization, social transparency, risk management and sustainability will bring new challenges to all the best procurement organizations around the world by 2025. While these changes will pose new challenges, they will also bring new opportunities for leaders who see the future and move their organizations into the new world that has already begun to emerge.

Digital innovations are transforming how we live and work, and are now beginning to have a similarly dramatic impact on costs. Exponential technologies enable new business and operating models with cost structures vastly lower than before, with the result that entire industries are being fundamentally reshaped—from music and movies to hotels and taxis, and everythingin between.